Grew up in Vestal, New York. US Navy test pilot. Total EVA Time: 0.50 days. Number of EVAs: 2.

NASA Official Biography

NAME: Daniel W. Bursch (Commander, USN)

NASA Astronaut

PERSONAL DATA:

Born July 25, 1957, in Bristol, Pennsylvania, but considers Vestal, New York, to be his hometown. Married to the former Roni J. Patterson of Modesto, California. Three children. He enjoys tennis, softball, windsurfing, skiing, and woodworking. His parents, Dudley and Betsy Bursch, reside in Stuart, Florida. Her mother, Gayle Hutcheson, resides in Nassau Bay, Texas. Her father, Jack Patterson, resides in Truckee, California

EDUCATION:

Graduated from Vestal Senior High School, Vestal, New York, in 1975; received a bachelor of science degree in physics from the United States Naval Academy in 1979, and a master of science degree in engineering science from the Naval Postgraduate School in 1991.

ORGANIZATIONS:

Member of the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association, the Association of Naval Aviation and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Bursch graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1979, and was designated a naval flight officer in April 1980 at Pensacola, Florida. After initial training as an A-6E Intruder bombardier/navigator (B/N), he reported to Attack Squadron 34 in January 1981, and deployed to the Mediterranean aboard the USS John F. Kennedy, and to the North Atlantic and Indian Oceans aboard the USS America. He attended the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in January 1984. Upon graduation in December he worked as a project test flight officer flying the A-6 Intruder until August 1984, when he returned to the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School as a flight instructor. In April 1987, Bursch was assigned to the Commander, Cruiser-Destroyer Group 1, as Strike Operations Officer, making deployments to the Indian Ocean aboard the USS Long Beach and the USS Midway. Redesignated an Aeronautical Engineering Duty officer (AEDO), he attended the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, from July 1989 until his selection to the astronaut program.

He has over 2,500 flight hours in more than 35 different aircraft, and has over 200 carrier landings.

Selected by NASA in January 1990, Bursch became an astronaut in July 1991. His technical assignments to date include: Astronaut Office Operations Development Branch, working on controls and displays for the Space Shuttle and Space Station; Chief of Astronaut Appearances; spacecraft communicator (CAPCOM) in mission control. A veteran of three space flights, Bursch has logged over 746 hours in space. He served as a mission specialist on STS-51 in 1993, STS-68 in 1994 and STS-77 in 1996.

STS-51 launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on September 12, 1993. During the ten-day mission the crew of five aboard the Shuttle Discovery deployed the U.S. Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS), and the Shuttle Pallet Satellite (SPAS) with NASA and German scientific experiments aboard. Following a spacewalk by two crew members to evaluate Hubble Space Telescope repair tools, the crew initiated rendezvous burns and Bursch recovered the SPAS using the Remote Manipulator System (RMS). The mission concluded on September 22, 1993, with the first night landing at the Kennedy Space Center. Mission duration was 236 hours and 11 minutes.

STS-68, Space Radar Lab-2 (SRL-2), launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on September 30, 1994. As part of NASA's Mission to Planet Earth, SRL-2 was the second flight of three advanced radars called SIR-C/X-SAR (Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar), and a carbon-monoxide pollution sensor, MAPS (Measurement of Air Pollution from Satellites). SIR-C/X-SAR and MAPS operated together in Endeavour's cargo bay to study Earth's surface and atmosphere, creating radar images of Earth's surface environment and mapping global production and transport of carbon monoxide pollution. Real-time crew observations of environmental conditions, along with over 14,000 photographs aided the science team in interpreting the SRL data. The SRL-2 mission was a highly successful test of technology intended for long-term environmental and geological monitoring of planet Earth. Following 183 orbits of the Earth, the eleven-day mission ended with Space Shuttle Endeavour landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on October 11, 1994. Mission duration was 269 hours and 46 minutes.

STS-77 launched from the Kennedy Space Center on May 19, 1996. It included the fourth Spacehab module flight as a scientific laboratory, designated SPACEHAB-4. It consisted of 12 separate materials processing, fluid physics and biotechnology experiments, with an emphasis on commercial space product development. STS-77 completed a record four rendezvous in support of two satellites sponsored by the Goddard Space Flight Center, and the SPARTAN 207/Inflatable Antenna Experiment (IAE) and the Passive Aerodynamically-stabilized Magnetically-damped Satellite/Satellite Test Unit (PAMS/STU). Following 160 orbits of the Earth, the ten-day mission ended with Space Shuttle Endeavour landing at the Kennedy Space Center on May 29, 1996. Mission duration was 240 hours and 39 minutes.

CURRENT ASSIGNMENT:

Bursch is assigned as a crew representative to the International Space Station.

NASA Group 13 - 1990 Requirement: pilot, engineer, and scientist astronauts for space shuttle flights. Nickname: The Hairballs. As the 13th astronaut group, the 'unlucky' theme was discussed in designing an emblem for the group. A black cat was used on an early patch design rejected by NASA. This reminded some of hairballs and the group members adopted this as a nickname. More...

STS-51 Crew: Bursch, Culbertson, Newman, Readdy, Walz. First shuttle night landing in Florida. Deployed and retrieved Orfeus-SPAS. During the EVA conducted tests in support of the Hubble Space Telescope first servicing mission and future EVAs, including Space Station assembly and maintenance. More...

ISS Finally completed in 2010 after a torturous 25-year development and production process, the International Space Station was originally conceived as the staging post for manned exploration of the solar systrem. Instead, it was seemed to be the death knell of manned spaceflight. More...

STS The Space Transportation System (Space Shuttle) was conceived originally as a completely reusable system that would provide cheap, routine access to space and replace all American and civilian military launch vehicles. Crippled by technological overreach, political compromise, and budget limitations, it instead ended up costing more than the expendable rockets it was to have replaced. STS sucked the money out of all other NASA projects for half a century. The military abandoned its use after the Challenger shuttle explosion in the 1980's. More...

Mission Specialists: Bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics and minimum three years of related experience or an advanced degree. Vision minimum 20/150 uncorrected, correctable to 20/20. Maximum sitting blood pressure of 140/90. Height between 150 and 193 cm.. Reported to the Johnson Space Center in late July 1990 to begin their year long training. Chosen from 1945 qualified applicants, then 106 finalists screened between September and November 1989.

STS-108 cargo bay payload was dominated by the Raffaello (MPLM-2) logistics module with 4 RSP and 8 RSR resupply racks. Also in the cargo bay were the MACH-1 and LMC experiment trusses flown under the Goddard small payloads program. MACH-1 was an MPESS-type Hitchhiker bridge carrying the CAPL-3 capillary thermal control experiment on top. On its forward side was the Starshine-2 launch canister, the CAPL-3 avionics plate, the Hitchhiker avionics plate, and the SEM-15 canister. On the aft side was the G-761 canister containing experiments from Argentina, the PSRD synchrotron detector (a prototype for the AMS antimatter experiment which will fly on Station later), and the COLLIDE-2 and SEM-11 canisters. The SEM (Space Experiment Modules) are collections of high school experiments. LMC, the Lightweight MPESS Carrier carried four canisters with materials science and technology experiments: SEM-12, G-785, G-064 and G-730. In addition, an adapter beam on the starboard sidewall carried G-221 and G-775, with materials science and biology experiments.

Raffaello was transferred back to the Shuttle payload bay on December 14. Endeavour undocked from the Station at 17:28 UTC on December 15 and made a half loop around the station before making a small separation burn at 1822 UTC. The Starshine-2 reflector satellite was ejected from the MACH-1 bridge in Endeavour's payload bay at 1502 UTC on December 16. Endeavour landed on runway 15 at Kennedy Space Center at 1755 UTC on December 17. The Expedition 3 crew of Culbertson, Dezhurov and Tyurin returned to Earth aboard Endeavour, leaving the Expedition 4 crew of Onufrienko, Bursch and Walz in charge of the Station.

STS-108 Mission Status Report #04 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Culbertson; Dezhurov; Godwin; Gorie; Kelly, Mark; Onufrienko; Tani; Tyurin; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-3; ISS EO-4; STS-108. As Endeavour continues its pursuit of the International Space Station, the seven astronauts and cosmonauts on board were awakened at 6:21 a.m. today to prepare for a busy day as they close the final 765 miles between the two vehicles in anticipation of a docking just before 2 p.m. CST today. Endeavour and the ISS are to link up off the British coast, southwest of Cardiff, Wales. Additional Details: here....

STS-108 Mission Status Report #09 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Culbertson; Dezhurov; Godwin; Gorie; Onufrienko; Tani; Tyurin; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-3; ISS EO-4; STS-108. The 10 astronauts and cosmonauts in orbit took a break from the transfer of supplies, experiments and equipment to and from the Space Shuttle Endeavour and the International Space Station today to pay tribute to the heroes of the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and the Pentagon. Additional Details: here....

STS-108 Mission Status Report #12 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Culbertson; Dezhurov; Godwin; Gorie; Kelly, Mark; Onufrienko; Shepherd; Tani; Tyurin; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-3; ISS EO-4; STS-108. The song "Let There Be Peace on Earth," performed by Vince and Jenny Gill, awakened Endeavour's crew this morning at 6:19 a.m. CST. The song was played for Expedition Three Commander Frank Culbertson from his wife for his years of dedicated pursuit of peace on Earth through service to his country, and in tribute to a special anniversary today. Additional Details: here....

STS-108 Mission Status Report #17 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Culbertson; Dezhurov; Kelly, Mark; Onufrienko; Tyurin; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-3; ISS EO-4; STS-108. Summary: The crews of Endeavour and the International Space Station continued packing the Italian-built Raffaello cargo module and the shuttle for the trip home today as the new station crew began to settle in aboard the complex for a five and a half-month stay.. Additional Details: here....

2001 December 13 - .

STS-108 Mission Status Report #16 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Culbertson; Dezhurov; Godwin; Gorie; Kelly, Mark; Onufrienko; Shepherd; Tani; Tyurin; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-3; ISS EO-4; STS-108. The crew onboard Endeavour was awakened at 7:17 a.m. CST this morning by the song "Here Comes the Sun", in memory of former Beatle George Harrison, who recently died of cancer. The instrumental was from the IMAX movie, "Everest". The song was played for the Expedition Three Crewmembers, Commander Frank Culbertson, Pilot Vladimir Dezhurov and Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin. The crew was allowed to sleep in for an extra hour with a relatively light day of activities in store. Additional Details: here....

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-01 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Summary: The International Space Station's Expedition Four crew began a new year in space this week conducting a variety of experiments, testing new techniques with the station's robotic arm and beginning to prepare for a spacewalk planned later this month.. Additional Details: here....

2002 January 11 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-02 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. The Expedition Four crew is completing its fifth week in space aboard the International Space Station, continuing preparations for the first spacewalk of the five-month mission. The six-hour spacewalk by Commander Yury Onufrienko and Flight Engineer Carl Walz is scheduled to begin at 2:56 p.m. CST, Monday, Jan. 14. This week, with the assistance of their crewmate, Flight Engineer Dan Bursch, the two spacewalkers outfitted and tested their Russian Orlan spacesuits and prepared the tools and equipment they will use on Monday. Additional Details: here....

2002 January 14 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-03 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Commander Yury Onufrienko and Flight Engineer Carl Walz floated outside the International Space Station on the first spacewalk of their expedition and finished installing a second Russian cargo boom, part of which had been delivered to the station two and a half years ago. With coordination help from inside the station by Flight Engineer Dan Bursch, the two space walkers also installed an amateur radio antenna on the Zvezda Service Module. Additional Details: here....

2002 January 18 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-04 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Summary: The Expedition Four crew of the International Space Station wrapped up a busy week Friday, installing a new, more robust computer storage device and preparing for the second spacewalk of its duty tour a little more than a week after the first.. Additional Details: here....

2002 January 25 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-05 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Expedition Four Commander Yury Onufrienko and Astronaut Dan Bursch completed a five-hour, 59-minute spacewalk outside the International Space Station today, installing six thruster deflectors at the rear of the Zvezda Service Module, retrieving and replacing a device to measure material from the thrusters and installing a ham radio antenna and its cabling. They also installed three materials experiments on Zvezda's exterior and a physics experiment. Additional Details: here....

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-07 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. The Expedition Four crew's normal work was interrupted this morning when a main computer in the International Space Station's Russian Zvezda living quarters module unexpectedly went off-line, disrupting the system which controls the spacecraft's orientation for a few hours. The computer is now back on-line and all station systems are operating normally. Additional Details: here....

2002 February 8 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-08 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. This week the Expedition Four crew - Commander Yury Onufrienko and Flight Engineers Carl Walz and Dan Bursch - worked with several of the science experiments aboard the International Space Station. They tested the ultrasound instrument in the Human Research Facility rack, activated the EarthKam experiment and the seventh sample cylinder in the Protein Crystal Growth - Single-locker Thermal Enclosure System, and tested the Zeolite Crystal Growth Furnace, which will be used to grow crystals beginning in April. The crew also completed their periodic physical fitness tests. Additional Details: here....

2002 February 15 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-09 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Summary: Activity on board the International Space Station this week focused on preparations for next week's spacewalk - the first to be conducted from the U.S. Quest airlock without a space shuttle docked.. Additional Details: here....

EVA ISS EO-4-3 - .
Crew: Walz; Bursch. EVA Type: Extra-Vehicular Activity. EVA Duration: 0.24 days. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Walz; Bursch. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. The spacewalk was made from the Station's Quest airlock. Depressurization was at around 1134 UTC and repressurization was at 1725 UTC. The spacewalk involved some preparatory work with cables and thermal covers in advance of the EVA's planned for STS-110 and the installation of the S0 truss. It was also intended to check out proper functioning of the Quest airlock, which had some minor problems on its first use in July 2001.

2002 February 22 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-12 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. The International Space Station Expedition 4 crew returned to normal activities today after Wednesday's successful spacewalk and what largely was a day of rest on Thursday. Commander Yury Onufrienko and astronauts Carl Walz and Dan Bursch participated in a number of medical tests, including post-spacewalk checkouts for Walz and Bursch. Additional Details: here....

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-18 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Expedition 4 astronauts Carl Walz and Dan Bursch successfully completed an exercise of the International Space Station's robotic arm today, using six of its joints and a software patch to mask the seventh, the failed wrist roll joint. The exercise consisted of the same activities that the Canadarm2 will use in installation of the S-Zero (S0) Truss on the ISS during Atlantis' STS-110 mission. Additional Details: here....

STS-110 Mission Status Report #04 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bloomfield; Bursch; Frick; Morin; Ochoa; Onufrienko; Ross; Smith, Steven; Walheim; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4; STS-110. Atlantis has closed the distance between it and the International Space Station to less than 1,800 statute miles, and is continuing its approach in anticipation of docking with the station at 11:06 a.m. central time today. The linkup should occur as the two spacecraft fly over south-central China, to the southwest of Shanghai. The Atlantis crew, Commander Mike Bloomfield, Pilot Steve Frick and mission specialists Rex Walheim, Ellen Ochoa, Lee Morin, Jerry Ross and Steve Smith, was awakened at 3:44 a.m. by "Rapunzel Got a Mohawk," performed by Joe Scruggs. The song was played for Ochoa, at the request of her family. Additional Details: here....

2002 April 11 - .

STS-110 Mission Status Report #07 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bloomfield; Bursch; Frick; Ochoa; Ross; Smith, Steven; Walheim; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4; STS-110. The expansion of the International Space Station continued today with the installation of the 13 1/2 ton S0 (S-Zero) truss segment on the orbital outpost. Assisted by Expedition Four Flight Engineer Dan Bursch, Atlantis Mission Specialist Ellen Ochoa gently lifted the truss out of the shuttle's payload bay at 5:30 a.m. Central time through the use of the station's robotic arm and maneuvered it onto a clamp at the top of the station's Destiny Laboratory. It took just under four hours to complete the delicate procedure. Additional Details: here....

STS-110 Mission Status Report #15 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bloomfield; Bursch; Frick; Morin; Ochoa; Onufrienko; Ross; Smith, Steven; Walheim; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4; STS-110. The first railcar in space crept down the track of a newly installed truss structure at the International Space Station today, paving the way for the future use of the system on which the station's robotic arm will be mounted to travel the full length of the complex. Additional Details: here....

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-19 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Gidzenko; Onufrienko; Shuttleworth; Vittori; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4; STS-110. Summary: The resident crew aboard the International Space Station took a short ride in their Russian Soyuz capsule this morning, relocating the rescue craft from one docking port to another to clear the way for the arrival of a fresh return vehicle in one week.. Additional Details: here....

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-23 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Expedition 4 Commander Yury Onufrienko and Flight Engineers Carl Walz and Dan Bursch spent most of their time this week packing for the arrival of the Expedition 5 crew aboard STS-111. Endeavour will be carrying the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with supplies and equipment for the Expedition 5 crew. The Expedition 4 crew is working to make room for those supplies, as well as prepare any equipment and scientific results that will be brought home with them aboard Leonardo. Additional Details: here....

2002 May 17 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-24 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Onufrienko; Walz. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. Summary: As Expedition 4 entered its 24th week aboard the International Space Station this week, the crew split time between preparations for the trip home early next month, continuing science experiments and recovering the use of an onboard oxygen generator.. Additional Details: here....

2002 May 24 - .

ISS Status Report: ISS 02-25 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Chang-Diaz; Cockrell; Korzun; Lockhart; Onufrienko; Perrin; Walz; Whitson. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4. The Expedition 4 crew of the International Space Station spent much of this week preparing for the arrival of Endeavour on STS-111 and their return home. They packed equipment and supplies for return to Earth aboard Endeavour. They also reconfigured and checked out spacesuits and the station's joint airlock in preparation for three spacewalks at the station by Endeavour mission specialists Franklin Chang-Diaz and Philippe Perrin. Additional Details: here....

STS-111 Mission Status Report #05 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Cockrell; Korzun; Lockhart; Onufrienko; Perrin; Walz; Whitson. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4; ISS EO-5; STS-111. Endeavour gently docked with the International Space Station this morning 240 miles over the South Pacific, setting the stage for eight days of docked operations highlighted by three scheduled spacewalks and the exchange of resident crews aboard the outpost. Commander Ken Cockrell guided Endeavour to a linkup with the forward docking port of the station's Destiny Laboratory at 11:25 a.m. Central time. The docking culminated a textbook rendezvous executed by Cockrell and Pilot Paul Lockhart. After waiting for about one hour to allow post-contact oscillations to subside, the two vehicles were joined firmly together at 12:27 p.m. Additional Details: here....

STS-111 Mission Status Report #06 - .
Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bursch; Cockrell; Korzun; Lockhart; Onufrienko; Perrin; Walz; Whitson. Program: ISS. Flight: ISS EO-4; ISS EO-5; STS-111. The newly arrived crewmembers of Expedition Five aboard the International Space Station - Commander Valery Korzun and Flight Engineers Peggy Whitson and Sergei Treschev - will continue settling into their new home today as they work with Endeavour's astronauts to move the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module from the shuttle's cargo bay to the Unity module of the complex in advance of the start of the transfer of almost 3 tons of equipment and supplies. Additional Details: here....